Ghislaine Maxwell denied new trial in sex trafficking conviction
The federal judge who oversaw the conviction of Ghislaine Maxwell for sex trafficking on Friday denied her request for a new trial.
The request came after a juror came forward and said they had been a victim of sexual abuse and that the experiences came up during deliberations.
The juror was given immunity from prosecution so he could testify about what he wrote on a juror questionnaire and why he did not disclose he was a victim of abuse.
In her order, Judge Alison Nathan wrote, “the court concludes that Juror 50 testified credibly and truthfully at the post-trial hearing.”
"His failure to disclose his prior sexual abuse during the jury selection process was highly unfortunate, but not deliberate," the judge wrote.
The Manhattan-based judge said the juror had no bias against Maxwell and was able to serve impartially.
The British socialite was convicted in December of five federal sex trafficking charges after a jury concluded that she played a pivotal part in recruiting and grooming teenage girls to be sexually abused by her close confidant, the wealthy financier Jeffrey Epstein.
Maxwell, 60, was found guilty of five of the six federal counts she was charged with and faces up to 65 years in prison. Her sentencing was slated for June 28.
Epstein was convicted in 2008 for procuring a child for prostitution.
He was being held on federal sex-trafficking charges when he died by suicide Aug. 10, 2019, at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in Manhattan.
